Shanksville may contract police coverage

Shanksville Borough officials are considering the purchase of police protection to help slow speeding motorists on Main Street.

Vice President Sean Daniels told council Monday that he had spoken with Indian Lake Mayor Barry Lichty about the idea about three weeks ago.

“They’re willing to work with us,” Daniels said.

This would not be the first intermunicipal law enforcement agreement between Shanksville and Indian Lake.

According to Lichty, the two shared police protection for nearly a decade starting in the early 1990s.

“We also had an agreement with Stonycreek Township to allow for our police to give citations between Indian Lake and Shanksville,” he said.

The revenue generated from fines was then given to the municipality where the citation had been written, Lichty added. At the time, Indian Lake charged Shanksville $19 per hour, and provided 16 hours of service per month.

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Lichty said there has been no discussion yet about a new rate because the talks are in the preliminary stage.

“I can’t speculate what it would be at this point, but it would cost considerably more,” he added.

Jim Hillegass, president of Shanksville Borough Council, said the topic will be revisited closer to the time they begin working on next year’s budget.

“It’s something we’d have to give some more thought toward in the fall,” he said.

Discussions on police protection began at last month’s council meeting when a few residents attended to voice concerns about speeding.

Hillegass said he has since asked Pennsylvania State Police for more frequent patrols.

“We have seen higher police presence here, which we’ve been appreciative of,” he added.